YOUR PEST CONTROL BUSINESS: CREATE A BETTER TEAM IN 4 STEPS

Your Pest Control Business: Create a Better Team in 4 Steps Table of Contents

INTRO01

STEP 3COMMUNICATE FREQUENTLY

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STEP 103KNOW THE REGULATIONS — AND FOLLOW THEM TO THE LETTER

STEP 206HIRE QUALIFIED STAFF, AND TRAIN THEM PROPERLY

STEP 411MAKE IT EASIER ON YOUR TECHS BY GOING DIGITAL

INTRO

As an owner or manager of a pest control business, you’re no stranger to the age-old problem confronted by every company whose employees work mostly in the field: How do you get the most out of your employees when you’re not physically present to supervise them?

On one level, you have the same challenge that every mobile business does. Some employees simply lack the professionalism to work productively without supervision, and some fail to possess the people skills required to represent your business professionally to a diverse group of customers.

Your challenges are bigger

But that challenge may be even greater for you than it is in most other industries. First, the industry is growing quickly. The Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that the U.S. will add nearly 13,000 new pest control workers by 2022, a growth rate of 20 percent a year. Environmental and other factors have led to an explosion in recent years of certain kinds of pests, causing rapid expansion of businesses.

Also, your employees deal with dangerous chemicals that can and harm and kill. (Indeed, that’s what they’re supposed to do.) An improperly applied chemical in a customer’s home could hurt a pet or a human. In addition to being a tragedy, that could cost you your business, and more.

The U.S. will add nearly 13,000 new pest control workers by 2022, a growth rate of 20% a year.

Your Pest Control Business: Create a Better Team in 4 Steps

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Pest control is dangerous work for technicians, too. Crawling underneath houses and through cluttered attics and basements, carrying heavy equipment, and confronting rodents and other animals are all in a day’s work for your employees.

Even when no one is harmed, and even when no improper application of a pesticide is made, any number of violations of federal or state regulations could cost you many thousands of dollars, or your license to operate.

How much of your business is in the hands of your staff?

Think about how much of your livelihood is in the hands of your pest control technicians. You trust your employees with more than just handling chemicals correctly and filling out every report as required. You also trust them to interact with your customers. So even if they’re doing the “pest control” part of their job right, if they’re not also dealing well with the human side of your business, you could get bad ratings on online review sites and fail to get the word-of-mouth referrals that businesses like yours thrive on.

That’s why it is absolutely vital that your workers be fully trained and qualified, and that you continue to carefully monitor their work, even if you can’t be with them every day.

In this eBook, we’ll take a closer look at how to better empower and manage your employees, helping you to create a responsive, service-oriented team that’s as good at capturing and controlling business-critical data as it is at ridding the world of rodents and roaches.

Think about how much of your livelihood is in the hands of your pest control technicians.

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INTRO

Your Pest Control Business: Create a Better Team in 4 Steps

02

Pest control companies must obey two regulatory masters. The federal Environmental Protection Agency sets limits on what chemicals may be used under what circumstances. State regulators may ban or restrict the use of some substances that the federal government hasn’t, set licensing and training requirements for your techs and managers, and demand the maintenance of records concerning the use of chemical products.

It is your responsibility, as the business license holder, to make sure that your techs follow the regulations regarding the safe use of pesticides, as well as all the necessary recordkeeping.

In most states, pest control companies are required to have at least one supervisor dedicated to those compliance requirements. For example, California requires that pest control companies have “at least one person in a supervisory position who holds a valid qualified applicator license at each principle and branch location.”

That’s not all, however. After becoming licensed, California (whose regulations are strict but not atypical) requires careful records management. Companies must:

Retain pest control application notification records for two years

Retain records of pesticide use for two years

Submit pesticide use reports to the county agricultural commissioner’s office in the county where the application was made

Have valid permits for restricted materials used

When chemical pesticides are applied, you must also know whether the pesticide is approved by the Environmental Protection Agency for general or restricted use.

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KNOW THE REGULATIONS — AND FOLLOW THEM TO THE LETTER

STEP 1

Your Pest Control Business: Create a Better Team in 4 Steps

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